Likud Has Enough Votes for Majority, Still Talking to Dmc

Likud appeared today to have enough votes to put together a coalition government with or without the Democratic Movement for Change (DMC). But Likud still hopes that the DMC with 15 Knesset seats, will join the new government to give it a more broad-based image.

Likud led by its leader Menachem Begin and the DMC headed by Yigal Yadin met for three hours late this afternoon in the third of their talks. Both sides refused to disclose what was said but another meeting is scheduled for Tuesday.

The certainty of a majority for a coalition came after the ultra-Orthodox Agudath Israel this morning agreed to join the Likud government pending approval from its Council of Sages. “We can start setting up a coalition right now, we have over 60 members on the coalition,” Likud number two man Simcha Ehrlich said after emerging from the meeting with Agudath Israel.

Likud would now have 62 votes, including its own 43 MKs, two from Ariel Sharon’s Shlomzion group, 12 from the National Religious Party and five from Agudath.

The Agudath leaders reported that Likud had promised that autopsies would not be performed without the consent of the family, that the work of missionaries in Israel will be confined and that girls from Orthodox families will no longer have to appear before a committee but can testify in any court that they are religious and thus exempt from the army.

The Agudath was reported offered a deputy ministerial post either in the Ministry of Welfare or the Interior Ministry should the Ministry of Religious Affairs be incorporated into that office.

The DMC is reportedly still insisting that Yadin be named Foreign Minister. Begin had offered Yadin the post of Deputy Premier with assurances that he be part of the inner Cabinet.